1. Field of the Present Invention
The present invention relates generally to stringed musical instruments and in particular to non-electrical devices and methods for producing sound effects on stringed instruments.
2. Background
Throughout history musicians have utilized special effects to dynamically alter the sound of an instrument creating unique musical notes and listening environments. For example, electric guitars are often used in conjunction with foot effects pedals (sometimes called “stomp boxes”), which the guitarist presses with his or her foot to change the characteristics of the sounds produced by the guitar. Tremolo, delay, echo, distortion, fuzz, overdrive, and wah-wah are a few examples of the different sound effects, which may be applied by such an effects pedal or unit. In addition to electric guitars, effects pedals and units may also be employed by other types of musical instruments connected to an amplifier, such as acoustic guitars, bass guitars, pianos, keyboards, pipe organs, drums, harps, and the like.
One particularly recognizable musical effect is the “wah-wah effect” that is typically created with a wah-wah pedal on an electrical guitar. The wah-wah effect is a type of spectral glide, which is a music-composition concept, consisting of a modification of the vowel quality of a musical tone. The wah-wah effect became wildly popular in the 1960s and 1970s by such players as Jimmy Hendrix and Eric Clapton. Currently, the wah-wah effect is generated by musicians through electrical signal processing devices often controlled by a foot pedal thus requiring the use of electrical instruments or the connection of a musical instrument to an electric amplifier. This setup requires musicians to purchase and travel with additional equipment, which is both expensive and burdensome. A related effect is a “delay” effect, which has similar problems.
There is therefore a need in the field for non-electrical devices and methods capable of generating wah-wah, delay, and other effects for use with stringed instruments such as the acoustic guitar